Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Down 0.3%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded down 0.3% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $40.12 and last traded at $40.13. 5,375,127 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 18,661,574 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.77.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $169.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.93.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The firm’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.20 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be issued a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.61%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 99.25%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 351,625,025 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $11,396,167,000 after acquiring an additional 930,367 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,882,164,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 92.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 22,599,173 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $851,989,000 after buying an additional 10,882,873 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 127.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,801,067 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $821,900,000 after buying an additional 12,220,777 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 12.0% in the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 16,353,817 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $686,206,000 after buying an additional 1,757,208 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

About Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and governmental entities worldwide. It operates in two segments, Verizon Consumer Group (Consumer) and Verizon Business Group (Business).